Outreach Assembly holds Funding and Resource Program for clubs

On Feb. 19, the ASUCD Outreach Assembly held its Funding and Resource Program to facilitate club funding on campus in MU II. A panel of representatives from various ASUCD units presented to show club members options for club funding as well as other aspects of club organization for student groups.

ASUCD Outreach Assembly aims to work with clubs on the UC Davis campus to minimize the gap between student clubs and student government. The assembly also works to inform students of the resources available for organizations on campus through ASUCD.

Representatives from Campus Copies, Picnic Day, the Center for Student Involvement, the Cross Cultural Center, the Student Recruitment and Retention Center, the Student Assistant to the Chancellor, the Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission and the External Affairs Commission were present at the resource program.

Sara Okholm, the unit director for Campus Copies and Classical Notes, mentioned the various resources that both offer students. These resources include printing, faxing, laminating, scanning and copying. She mentioned that they are an excellent resource for clubs in regards to printing flyers or other materials in large quantities.

Maddie Lai, the volunteer director for Picnic Day, described the various volunteer and leadership opportunities that Picnic Day has for students in clubs. According to Lai, students can volunteer through their respective clubs at the Student Organization Fair on Picnic Day, in which volunteers lead food booths on the Quad during Picnic Day.

Heather Prandini from the Center for Student Involvement described her office’s role of helping student organizations on campus with fundraising, reservations on campus, advising and leadership workshops. The office also offers a funding source called Beyond Tolerance grant funding where students can earn up to $200 for hosting an event that supports the Hate Free Initiative on campus. The Center for Student Involvement also registers clubs on campus.

The Cross Cultural Center presented to inform students about its leadership conferences that focus on social and political identity as well as awareness. The Cross Cultural Center allocates funds for grants, and these grants are given to student groups that host cultural events and also to sponsor various groups on campus.

The Student Recruitment and Retention Center (SRRC) also provides various resources for student organizations on campus. According to the representative present on the panel, the Student Recruitment and Retention Center holds study hours on Tuesdays from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. for students to study and get testing materials, including scantrons and blue books. Student organizations can also apply for grants worth up to $1,000 through the SRRC.

One of the student assistants to Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi presented to emphasize his role as a voice for students to the administration. He also mentioned that the student assistants to the chancellor have a $5,000 budget, meaning that they are able to provide grant money to organizations that do not fit the requirements for other grants that contain more specific requirements.

A representative from the Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission (ECAC) presented regarding its role as a voice for minorities on campus and working to combat discrimination and racism on campus. ECAC also offers grants for student groups.

The chair of the External Affairs Commission (EAC) also presented to describe EAC’s role of bridging the gap between UC Davis students and the Davis community to the overall community of Yolo County. The commission works to create events that foster the relationship between students and the Yolo community in general. The EAC helps student organizations get involved in events and causes outside of the immediate circle of UC Davis.

The Environmental Policy and Planning Commission also provides grant money for organizations putting on events related to the well-being of the environment of sustainability.

Ritu Parekh, a second-year mechanical engineering major, attended the Funding and Resource Program on behalf of Design for America.

Design for America is a nationwide organization that started up on the UC Davis campus during Fall Quarter. The organization works to tackle problems in each chapter’s community, in this case Yolo County.

According to Parekh, members have six local focuses: working to assess food security, safety and transportation, workers on small farms, Alzheimers, disaster relief and water conservation. Parekh mentioned that Design for America is still trying to establish itself at UC Davis.

According to Parekh, she attended the Resource and Funding Program because, “in order to work on our projects, we need a little bit more money, so just to see what there is on campus for us to get that.”

Lauren Ashe, the speaker of the ASUCD Outreach Assembly, said she organized the Funding and Resource Program in the hopes of informing clubs on the variety of funding options that are available to them through ASUCD.

“Many clubs don’t know that there are hidden pockets of funds within ASUCD and just from other places on campus,” Ashe said.

According to Ashe, the Outreach Assembly hopes to be able to meet with more student clubs, for it is currently difficult to promote its available resources. The Funding and Resource Program was part of Outreach Assembly’s efforts to close the gap between student groups and both organization and funding resources on campus.